Blue core, p.13
Blue Core, page 13
part #1 of Blue Core Series
Shayma waved a hand, watching it from the strange outside perspective. "Yeah, it’s...a lot."
"Are you all right, Shayma?" Iniri asked anxiously, leaning forward in her seat.
"I’m fine. Blue is just showing me what he can see."
"Okay, so let’s zoom out a bit and you can see what is going on." For this, I kept the senses vague. She didn’t need to be able to see every blade of grass and scrap of mana. Mostly, I wanted her to see the broad strokes of the mana dynamo, the three chambers and the flow between them.
"Oh, wow," she breathed. "This is all mana? How come I can’t see any of it normally?"
"I have no idea. But see, that flow increases my mana regen and resource generation, so I figure I want something like it for the farm areas. Only, I don’t know if the way it’s put together is even a good way to do it, and I also don’t know what any of your crops are like. So really, any ideas you have for what I ought to do for cropland are great."
"I...don’t know much about farming," Shayma admitted. "I guess I know most of the foods we have, but not how to grow them properly? I do know that the ice and fire places might be really useful. There are some herbs and fruits that only grow like that. Mostly in mana springs of the proper affinity."
"So what are mana springs anyway?"
She smiled broadly. "One of the things adventuring Classers go for all the time. The mana gets all knotted and takes on a certain Affinity and then you get animals and plants and things coming from that area."
"Are there any around here?" I was curious. I hadn’t seen anything outside the mundane since I was here, and if they were all localized to these mana springs, that might explain it.
"No. This area is practically mana-dead. Except for you, I guess. That’s one reason I was surprised to find a dungeon here. How could one form?"
"I also have no idea! But I’m pretty sure I do duplicate what mana springs do, at least."
"Right, so, hmm. Farmland."
It turned out they had a number of crops similar to ones I was familiar with, albeit with different names. Their rice still used terraces, but the grains were green and hexagonal. Something like potatoes were red and grew in circular patterns around the parent plant. So we had some little information to think about structuring the farmland.
Shayma suggested a sort of lobed structure, chopping it up into different areas for different crops with terraces for the rice and whatever else used them on the outer walls. The magma was turned into a far deeper and narrower chamber, reducing the heat so there’d be room at the top for growing things where humans could actually survive, while the ice was flattened out. More water, access to the cold area, and more wind. The end result of the plan was rather mushroom-like, which was at least vaguely appropriate for a farmland.
I really, really wished the overlay had a note function. Just text would be fine, but sketching or, even better, some sort of rendering ability would be amazing. I didn’t need the map anymore, not with [Genius Loci], but that fantastic skill just left me wanting more tools. Unfortunately for me, I had yet to run into anything that gave me even a hint how to do so. Though maybe that Status sigil would. It was the first time I’d seen overlay functions in the real world, so to speak.
Once it was clear Shayma could handle the input, Cheya and Iniri had headed off for a meeting with other members of her council, filling them in on the deal. So when we wrapped up our planning, she was more or less alone. She glanced around nonetheless, lowering her voice. "Blue? I know our Bargain is finished, but...are you ever going to take me again?"
Her tone of voice made it very clear she hoped the answer was yes. I’d not pushed because, given the circumstances, I wasn’t sure she even could say no, but now that she was asking I felt no little glee. "When you get home tonight, we can find out everything my breeding station can do," I promised her with a laugh. "In fact, I’m sure exploring everything will take days."
Day 85 - Shayma
Magic was amazing.
Ever since Blue had gifted her with mana and spellcasting, it was like an entirely new part of her brain had woken up. A part that could let her push anything she imagined into the world, so long as she fed it mana. Of course, it wasn’t as easy as all that.
Despite the relatively high Skill level guiding her, she wasn’t actually that practiced with said skill, and neither of her teachers were quite proficient enough to properly push her limits. Cheya’s illusions were from [Illusionary Shadows] rather than the broad-base Skill she had, and Joce’s [Archmage] skill was so broad he’d never really pushed Illusion very far. Between them, though, she was starting to get a handle on keeping illusions going, and preventing them from being dispelled by mere interaction.
There were actually two types of illusion, broadly speaking. One was an illusion imposed upon the world, the other imposed upon a person. She could create either a false reality, or a hallucination. Really she preferred the former over the latter, despite the fact that it was often more difficult. Reaching into people’s heads was beyond what she felt she could handle, this early on. She hadn’t even advanced her Class yet!
[Combat Shapeshifting] was almost as absurd, even though she had precious little shapeshifting to add to it yet. There was nobody who had any shapeshifter type skills with them, which was little surprise. Shapeshifting wasn’t common, and it was usually to a specific form when it did exist. The apparent free-form nature of it stymied her, though she had a feeling it was a little bit like [Illusion]. The only thing she’d managed so far were longer claws.
That said, [Combat Shapeshifting] still helped her with using [Illusion] and [Ghost Step] in combat, making the multi-tasking just that little bit easier. [Legerdemain] was a little bit of an edge case. Huron’s instruction with basic unarmed combat showed she really could land hits maybe a hand’s width further away than her reach. Which was, in his words, entirely unfair. But it did make properly learning punches, kicks, and blocks more difficult for both of them.
Actually, he admitted, she’d be an annoyance even at level one by combining illusions and combat. She didn’t yet have the power to truly hurt a higher-level Classer, and she didn’t have the mana pool to outlast one, but if there were a Great Dungeon nearby she could clear a few levels and become a proper Classer herself without issue. Blue didn’t have monsters, or even proper levels, so he couldn’t provide much help himself.
Well, aside from maybe exercising [Physical Superiority] but she wasn’t sure that counted.
Her basic methodology for the moment was to start by creating two illusions of herself, then using [Ghost Step] to force Huron to lose track of which was which. [Illusion] and [Illusory Presence] meant that she could make herself almost invisible, or more disorienting, like a poorly maintained [Illusion]. Then it was a matter of distracting or flanking with her copies as she darted in for an attack.
She rarely actually landed a proper blow with Huron, once he adjusted to her extra reach, but he was a level 42 [Brawler] with [Keg-Se Style: Mastery] skill. It was only to be expected. But so long as she had sufficient stamina for [Ghost Step], it was difficult for him to do much in return. Normally [Blink] style movement took mana and spellcasting, so the variant Blue had given her was potent.
Still, the record for this particular bout was her three touches to his five, which was depressing until she reminded herself of the vast level and experience difference. She’d been training less than a week.
His advice was, in a group, that she should distract and confuse. Though [Combat Shapeshifting] wasn’t up to damaging high level Classes or monsters, her magic was still disorienting. Even if it was something she could damage, the support potential was more potent and a far better use of her efforts.
By herself, she was an ambusher. With her species enhanced perception, [Illusory Presence], and [Ghost Step], she should be able to get the drop on most, and from that point on they shouldn’t ever know where the real her was. Her illusions could be seen to take wounds, bleed, and retreat if necessary. No need for her to do any of that.
Between training sessions, Blue consulted her on the cropland rooms. Not that either of them actually knew what they were doing, and once they got some farmers in things could change, but she was entirely flattered that he wanted her input. Especially since the complexity of most of what he was doing was far beyond her. Just the little bit of input he gave her was enough to level her [Awareness] skill twice so far, his omniscient view of everything an overwhelming version of the same.
It hadn’t taken more than a few days to get used to the wind-and-water wash of his attention. His words were clear enough when he addressed them on her, but when he wandered off track or shifted his focus they quickly faded into mere noise. She found she could even, to some extent, tell how much attention he was paying to her, and how much he was laboring over other, more arcane matters. It was actually quite nice, a soothing background to her days that helped her relax and center herself.
Soon enough she’d be ready to head out and try to bring back some allies. She was the only one who could move without signaling their location to Vok Nal, since Blue’s [Warding] and her [Illusionary Presence] rendered her entirely unidentifiable to any kind of divination, even from another dungeon. With the Class that Blue had granted her, she would be ready.
Day 85 - Blue
Day 85 - Blue
The new chambers proceeded slowly.
That wasn’t a complaint. I was being reserved on purpose. Partly because I didn’t want to strain my stone and biomass reserves again, and partly because Shayma and I kept tweaking details as the mana links came together. From her end, she felt that it’d be better to keep the flows apart, to keep them from overwhelming either crops or people. From mine, I had to keep modifying the water cycle to actually provide enough moisture and breeze without collapsing the engine. Mostly I put down tayantan trees to serve as anchors until there were real plants involved.
I also played with the Expansion field. Instead of dialing it to ten immediately, I grew things slowly. It didn’t have any impact on the stone cost, and in fact seemed like it took more mana overall, but considering the sizes involved, better to lean on my prodigious mana regeneration than risk bottoming out on my actual mana reserves. If I ran out while the field was still generating, would it snap back to start? Would it explode? These were not questions I wanted to investigate.
But eventually they were done, the ten-times expansion in place, red chrystheniums lined the throat of the fluted magma chamber, white ones dotting the low ceiling of the ice chamber, and green in the farmland between. Either I hit the size requirements exactly, or the volume didn’t get calculated until after the field stabilized, because the instant both chambers locked to their maximum expansion I got notifications on the overlay.
Size requirements for level increase met.
Dungeon Level increases by 1.
Skill base levels increase by 1.
Dungeon level has reached 5! Initial Dungeon Stage complete.
Calculating Rewards…
Due to having a Name acknowledged by a Power, you are now aware when your Name is invoked by anyone.
Due to killing less than ten intelligent beings, the dungeon is awarded the [Merciful] title. Driving off enemies without killing them now awards experience.
Due to generating no combat monsters, the dungeon is awarded the [Defender’s Superiority] title. The dungeon gains experience from creating and using new defenses. The more complex the defense, the more experience gained.
Due to obtaining a Companion, the dungeon is awarded the [Loyal Protector] title. For the Companion being of rank 5, the title is upgraded to [Sworn Protector]. The dungeon may teleport their Companions to the Core at any time.
I had no idea I’d be getting extra rewards. Honestly the rewards for level-ups were enough. Just that advancement brought me to level ten for [Fields], and [Blue Core Breeding Station], which gave me the ability to use different types of fields in the same room, and [Purifier Breeding Station], respectively. The first was absurdly useful and maybe even suspiciously timely, while the last one was probably going to be fun.
So far as the actual level-five rewards went, they were all interesting. The first one seemed...almost mystical, rather than strictly magical, and the next two would probably become useful in the not-too-distant future. The last one, being able to summon Shayma from anywhere, was the one that interested me the most. That meant I could haul her out of danger!
I’d have to overhaul the Core room though. Right now it was just a tiny, dark room, as far away from any sort of access as I could manage. It really wasn’t fit for human habitation, let alone Shayma habitation. Fortunately, I had an idea for what to do with it ready and waiting to go, though it wasn’t a new idea.
With my resource and mana income it didn’t take much time to remake the small lake, bordered with grass and trees, with a cottage in the middle. It still wasn’t a large cottage, though I expanded the main room just a little bit since my Core was in the middle of it, and this time I paid extra attention to making sure everything was high-quality. I also spruced up the surroundings, putting deepwater flowers in the lake to give it a mysterious-looking inner illumination, as well as green and mossy chrystheniums to round out the flora. Then, feeling whimsical, I added some crystalline and latticework versions around the entrance, the petals shimmering.
The final touch was either a [Link]ed door or a [Teleport] pad. I really wanted to test out the Teleporter, but I didn’t want to give casual access to the Core, or Shayma’s cottage, so with some reluctance I erected an empty archway in front of the cottage and another one in the town square, Linking them so I could use them as a selective transport.
I really wished I had some form of scripting or something. I would love to be able to make a simple white- or black-list for teleportation, even if I didn’t have much need for it at the moment. Though it occured to me right then I actually did have a need for teleportation, and teleportation pads, to let people go between the living space and the farm spaces. Which meant I had an opportunity to play with the Teleport pads after all.
Without [Mana Manipulation] I would have had to build a tiny room for them, but with it I could just wrap the area where I wanted the field to prevent it from spreading out over the whole floor. They came in linked pairs, but I didn’t need to draw any links between the two. I could get them to work without fully understanding the mechanics, thankfully, since the mana architecture was the most complicated thing I’d seen so far. They were also incredibly expensive. Just a pair of linked sets from the living area to the farms ate a fifth of my mana income with their upkeep. That said, the farming chambers weren’t nearly as profitable as the main stack yet, given how empty they were, so they’d probably pay for themselves eventually.
I waited until Shayma was done with her [Illusion] sparring, where she and Cheya were involved in some nigh-incomprehensible duel between their respective images. I sure didn’t know what they were doing, but I figured high-level people did. Regardless, it seemed effortful enough that by the end of it Shayma was sweating and breathing hard. "I have a surprise for you! Go through the arch in the middle of town."
"Ooh?" That was enough to perk her back up, and she bowed to Cheya before heading for the town center. Once she entered the arch, I activated the link and she instantly appeared in the Core room.
"The cottage!" Her eyes sparkled. "I’m so glad it’s back. Thank you!" She slowly walked across the wooden path that crossed the lake, looking down into the blue-glowing depths and stopping at the door to touch the crystalline flowers there. Then she opened the door and stared. "Is that...you?"
"It’s the core, anyway. I’m not sure what exactly counts as me? I’m kind of the whole dungeon. But yes."
"Well, you’re gorgeous."
"...thank you." I hadn’t really expected that reaction. Though to be fair, I hadn’t paid close attention to my core for a very long time. No longer was it a plain gray crystal, two feet high or so. Instead it was taller than Shayma and a meter wide, faceted and blue. Not just a solid blue, either. Different shades of the color drifted within, everything from pale near-white to a deep, almost indigo ribbon. They moved slowly, flowing as mana poured into and through the core, a miniscule reflection of the enormous complexity of the dungeon, wrought in cerulean and sky.
Shayma stepped up to it and put her hands flat on the crystal surface. Disappointingly, I couldn’t feel anything, but Shayma’s eyebrows went up. "I can see my Status!" Her eyes unfocused, looking at, I assumed, her own version of the overlay. "And I can...transcribe skills and abilities? By the gods...it just...[Mana Manipulation]?" She staggered backward, dazed.
"Yeah that transcription is what the Bargain used to remake your class. I guess Companions can do it themselves if the Core doesn’t? But not everything translates...I’m guessing you didn’t get [Mana Logic]."
"No, I didn’t."
"Well, [Mana Manipulation] is probably pretty useful for a mage! I’ll have to try and transcribe you skills more often, I think. When I get new ones, anyway."
"I...yes. That would be amazing. I wonder if you can have too many Skills?"
"I hope not. The more the merrier!"
Day 90 - Shayma (Explicit)
They gathered at the edge of Blue’s land, where he’d put standing stones that looked weathered and ancient despite being no more than a week old. Within those bounds, [Warding] kept them undetected by magic and possibly even the naked eye. They weren’t sure what the limits of a dungeon Power’s Skill were. She exchanged hugs with Iniri and Cheya and Tulk, bowed to Huron and Joce, and clasped hands with everyone else.
Her target was Wildwood Retreat, which was a fairly coy name for one of the most dangerous spots in Iniri's kingdom. Though there was no Great Dungeon within the borders, the powerful Mana spring that Wildwood was named for was nearly as strong. Classers and would-be Classers alike went there for training and practice, or to hunt. Powerful beasts and strange materials could be found at the heart of Wildwood, where the Mana was so thick you could almost drink it.
